Fourth of July is right around the corner and I’m in the midst of figuring out my menu. I love to grill and bbq for this summer holiday, but that also usually means a pretty meat heavy occasion. So I do our best to accommodate the needs of my vegetarian friends because it’s always a bummer to see them picking away at the one or two dishes that were prepared without meat/animal products which usually ends up being some sort of salad or crudite platter, which is fine but not really fine, you know?

I always like to provide a great vegetarian friendly alternative, so for this 4th of July we’re going back to one of our favorite veg burgers, this Spicy Black Bean Burger! I love the flavor and texture this burger provides, plus it’s super satisfying. I’m a big meat gal myself, but there have also been many occasions where I’ve opted for a veg patty over a beef one.

This recipe is simple and delicious and you can really dress it up however you want. We’ve added a simple guacamole, sliced tomatoes and alfalfa sprouts to ours, but for this holiday I’m thinking slices of cheese, grilled or caramelized onions, roasted garlic aioli, crisp lettuce, and maybe even potato chips stuffed inside are in order! :) If you’re not totally sold on the black bean base we have a couple other options for you, including a quinoa burger and falafel burger, both so different but so tasty!

Do you guys have any vegetarian friendly dishes you love to grill up? I would absolutely love to hear about them. Enjoy! xx, Jenny

Hello! Something you all probably don’t know about me is that long ago I was a vegetarian….FOR 3 YEARS! Crazy, right?! It was when I was in high school, after watching a rather inhuman and disturbing video in class. I swore off meat until one day, three years later, I walked into Panera Bread, bought and ate an asiago, roast beef sandwich and that was that :) Still to this very day I love my fair share of meatless dishes. Veggie burgers are always great and I’ve tried them so many ways, with lentils, mushrooms, tofu, tempeh, etc. My favorite type of meatless burger is a good, full flavored black bean burger. We have one here for you all today, studded with corn (because corn is awesome) and loaded with spices. These burgers are great, but still rather soft and delicate and should be handled gently while cooking them. These are great with just about any topping and condiment of your choice, plus they’re super easy to make and really fill you up. Enjoy!
xx Jenny

Directions:
1. Place onion, jalapeno and garlic in a food processor and pulse 5 or 6 times.
2. Add beans, oats, corn, green onion, cumin, curry powder, and cayenne. Season with salt and pepper and pulse 8 times. Scrape downs sides of the bowl and pulse an additional 5 to 8 times (depending on desired texture).
3. Place mixture into a mixing bowl, cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for at least two hours.
4. Remove chilled mixture from refrigerator and stir in breadcrumbs. Adjust seasonings.
5. Pour oil into a heavy bottom skillet and place over medium. Form mixture into four equal patties. Cook patties for 5 to 7 minutes on each side or until a crust develops and the patties are heated through.
6. Remove patties from heat and place onto burger buns. Assemble burger with toppings and condiments of your choice and serve.

I haven’t eaten red meat for… about 8 years now but must admit, I still miss burgers (and may have had a few missteps in these 8 years..) I love boca burgers but I haven’t been able to find a super yummy “burger” that I can make on my own. Thanks for sharing this recipe and will definitely look to giving it a try sometime in the future!

Veggie burgers are the best! I have a number of vegetarian friends and I find that the biggest thing that unites them with the meat eaters is an excellent burger. Love your use of black beans in this one.

I love your blog! The photography is always absolutely fantastic, and your comments are so fun! Also, this burger looks amazing. I’ve been trying to convince my (vegetarian) boyfriend to make homemade veggie burgers for weeks now – I think the corn and jalapenos in this one will finally do the trick!

Your timing was in perfect synch with my grocery list-making. These became dinner last night and they were delicious! When my boyfriend first got a whiff of them he didn’t believe that they were meat-free.

I ended up with about 6 patties – I think mine were a bit thinner – but they were very filling.

Oh man, I usually don’t post on blogs but I just tried this and loved it! I’m burger obsessed and have never felt satisfied by packaged meatless varieties so I’ve wanted to try my own for a while now since full meaty meals are just soo heavy. This recipe has made me a believer, and I can’t wait to try more recipes. It was pretty sloppy though and I think next time I will try it in a pita pocket, like a SW falafel.

We made these for dinner last night. Very, very yummy and super easy! We used the traditional burger toppings of lettuce, pickles, mustard, ketchup, etc. and thought that a cucumber yogurt sauce might match well with the curry/cumin spices. We’ll try that next time. This recipe is a definite keeper!

I just made this tonight for my family! It was delicious!! We are very much a meat-eating family and my husband was pretty skeptical! He LOVED it!

I just wanted to add that I didn’t mix it ahead and refrigerate. I forgot to do it earlier today and decided to just go ahead. Instead of cooking them in a skillet with oil, I put them on a sheet pan (be sure to spray with Pam) and baked them at 400 for about 5 min, flipped and then another 5 min. Delicious! My husband already asked when I was going to make them again ;)

Hi Tracey! This just means that after you cut the kernels off the cob, you should take the back of a knife and scrape the extra liquid “milk” off the cob. I recommend doing this in/over a bowl. Corn milk has really great flavor! Let me know if you have other questions!

I made these last night..very good! I had trouble flipping the burgers – they would stick to the pan and they weren’t as thick/firm as I would like. I may need to add either more oats or bread crumbs or pulse less in the food processor. They were really good even my husband who is a meat eater – liked them!

I made these last night, my first foray into vege burgers. I could not find gf rolled oats so was stuck using steel cut oats. Googled how to substitute and the consensus was straight across just let the mix sit for an hour in the fridge–perfect for the recipe directions! Have to say, I tasted them after an hour and loved the crunch,but I waited 2 hours to be true to the recipe (at least the first time!). I think the crunch would have given the “burger” a meatier texture. Next time!

This has become a staple in our house. We love them! We aren’t vegan, so I add a little egg to make it stick together better. But, this recipe made us look at black bean burgers in a whole new light. We usually like them with sauteed onions and chipotle mayo. Thanks for sharing this recipe!

These were FANTASTIC! As a forced vegetarian due to health, I have been craving something “meaty” and voila! I tried this last night and after the first bite I knew that this would become a household staple! I wonder…can these be made with cooked lentils as well?

These are now a staple for me. I make like 45 of them and stick them in the freezer. Wow! SOoooo good! I added cilantro, a little mesquite flavoring, onion powder, garlic powder (even though there’s already onion and garlic in there), and I also used more oatmeal instead of using breadcrumbs.

Sometimes I bake it vs pan cooking as well, but gotta say I do prefer the pan seared version. I don’t even use hamburger buns. I pull 2 of them out of the freezer, nuke them in the microwave, then top it with Sriracha sauce, ketchup, and other toppings and I dig in with a fork and knife! OMG!! Delish! Who needs the bread! :) But I’m gonna try it with some gluten free hamburger buns this weekend.

Lemme tell ya folks, adding that fresh cilantro into the mix took this already awesome recipe over the top! Thank you for THE best black bean burger recipe on the internet!! Heck, it was even WAY better than the store-bought one I ate that sent me looking for a spicy black bean burger recipe.

this is a lovely burger. As stated it is delicate but so worth it! we serve it on a multigrain bun topped with chipotle/lime mayo, lettuce, tomato, cucumbers, avocado, caramelized onions and sharp cheddar. Super delicious. (We freeze these uncooked and cook from thawed with great success)

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